16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes
The amazing thing is that there is not shortage of truss clusters
Hudson, are you saying that you're getting trusses on a stem more often than the usual indet pattern of one-truss-after-three-leaves? If so, that would be an interesting mutation.
Missingtheobvious - I wasn't thinking that at all with the statement - just meant that there were the normal amount of trusses going up the plant. You got me thinking though and I had to check it out this morning. There are the normal - one truss after three leaves.
I did break off the top of one the plants this morning training the stem - dang it - hate it when I do that. There is another sucker close by but it just set the plant back some - I didn't apply more pressure than usual - just hit a weak spot I guess.
I had the same thing happen to one of my two larger plants that I had in a nursery pot waiting to transfer to the ground. It had been outside for a couple of weeks. The first day we go a sustained breeze with some fairly significant gusts, the same 'blisters' appeared. I think it was wind damage. I thought I had given it enough wind protection that day but apparently not. My leaves were a little droopy as well. I brought it back in once I saw it in this state.
It seems to be doing fine now...except for the stem marks.
"I am no longer in GA. Now I am in Seattle, WA area. So we do not have the scorching heat of the south hear."
Then you should go to your profile page and change that information. That way when you ask a question, you will receive more relevant responses.... Although in the case of "dwarfing" Brandywine, the responses you received are relevant, dwarfism just doesn't work that way.
Betsy
Ed- yes it shot up to 90 degrees the day after planting. But now it's back to the low 70s.
Dave- thanks, that's what I was hoping. But got spooked that it might be something worse. Many of the images online for Yellow Leaf Disease are fairly similar to those for Tomato Leaf Roll.
Or just cap off the one head. No point in losing the plants just because of one sprinkler head. Treat the problem, not the problems it causes. Especially when treating the created problems only makes them worse.
In addition to the reduced light they are getting leggy due to the trapped heat. Anyone with experience in growing in GH or plastic tunnels can assure you you are going to regret this set-up.
Dave
edweather
Sorry, I can not post a picture as I don't have a camera. After looking at them for a few days and reading the comments posted here I am convinced these are not Black Cherry tomatoes. They don't resemble any of the photos I have been able to find, they are decidedly plum shaped and more than a little fuzzy. It is disappointing not to have the Black Cherries but I am curious enough as to what they might be to grow them out anyway.
Carolyn
Thanks for the input, any thoughts as to what I might have?
I am hardly a fan of Monsanto to say the least and buy all my seeds from specialised online websites.
There are -- so far, at least -- only a handful of GMO crops, and no GMO seeds for sale to the home grower. Nor are there likely to be in the near future.
That's not to excuse Monsanto: merely my protest against seed ads I've seen online which imply a) only their site is a guarantee of non-GMO seed purity, and b) open-pollinated seeds are rare.
2 days in the 40s can do a lot of damage to tomato plants if they weren't covered. In time they may recover but depending on the type of plant they may remain stunted.
Your soil appears to have a great deal of wood chips in it so there may be some nitrogen binding going on and you will have to supplement with extra N. Otherwise what have you fed them, added to the bed for nutrients, etc.?
The new growth appears basically ok but those older leaves will likely die and fall off. Purpling can be just the result of young plants, cool temps, and poor root development and goies away as the plant matures. But it can also be a symptom - if seen in older growth - of phosphorous deficiency. While P deficiency is relatively rare your soil filler may be low in it. So again a good feeding should help. But I would use a granular side dressing rather than a liquid since since over-watering is already an issue.
Hope this helps.
Dave
Sounds to me like the growth point terminated with the flower cluster. This happens occasionally to my plants too, and I've never been able to figure out why it happens, either. It happened to one of my "Supersteak" tomato this season
That said, your plant will be okay, methinks. In my experience, when the main stem stops like that, a sucker or two takes over in place of the main growth point.
It is called "stunting". The plant itself is stunted and sets its terminals blooms. Stunting can be caused by several different stress factors but the most common is early exposure to overly cold air and/or soil temps. It is one good reason to avoid overly early planting out.
Dave
There is an old adage - "N for shoots, P & K for blooms and roots." It has more than a bit of truth in it.
Container plants are normally fed at least weekly. Nutrients wash out of the soil every time you water. The smaller the container the faster the nutrients leach out and the more frequently you need to feed. So while your approach may be fine for in ground plants, it isn't sufficient for container plants.
Further container mixes usually lack the beneficial soil micro-herd needed to convert organics to nutrients. But since you have been adding that organic liquid ferts should work for you although more slowly. But pick up one that is heavier on the P and K side than N or at least balanced, and use it much more often. See link below for ideas.
Dave
Here is a link that might be useful: Liquid organic fertilizers
Good to know. I knew that care for container plants is different, but I didn't realize it was that different.
I looked at that link. I'm familiar with Alaska fertilizers (that's what my current 5-1-1 is), so I'm kind of leaning toward one of those products, either the "All Purpose Fish Fertilizer" (2-2-2) or "MorBloom" (0-10-10).
Which one of those would be more ideal? I still want SOME Nitrogen, right? Would it be a good idea to use MorBloom for the heavy P&K content and then use the stuff I have now as well for Nitrogen?
I checked two sites which usually give heights:
V = the big French database Ventmarin.
http://ventmarin.free.fr/passion_tomates/passion_tomate.htm
CF = the Cultivar Finder at the forum we can't link to or name.
Black Plum:
V = 5'10" - 6'6"
CF = in their 4'-6' category
Italian Paste:
V = no size listed
CF = variety not listed
Blondkopfchen:
V = 4'10" - 5'2"
CF = in both their 4'-6' and 6'-8' categories, which I interpret as perhaps 5'-7'
Thanks for the resources, I hadn't seen those yet.
So it looks like Blondkopfchen, Black Plum, Black Krim, Tula & Cherokee are good ones to try along the fence. I'll try an Italian Paste there too (the seeds were a freebie from TomatoFest, just listed as "Italian Paste", figured I'd try them out).